The picture above says it best: five presidents, three Democrats and two Republicans; two Texans, father and son; all sharing a historic moment as our state's third presidential library was dedicated Thursday under a diamond-bright Lone Star sky.

The occasion of bipartisan good feeling feeds the American soul at a moment when that grieving soul needs nourishing.

Bush's eight years in the Oval Office were filled with controversy and disagreement over his decision to prosecute the Iraq War, but this was a time and place for remembering the administration's achievements.

Modern presidential libraries are frequently derided in scholarly circles as uncritical monuments to the men they honor. Time will tell how the second Bush library is received.

The ex-president has said he is content to let history judge his performance in an era of great international turmoil.

The Bush library will be the central resource for scholarly examination of the 43rd president's performance over the long arch of history.

Texas students and families now have presidential libraries in College Station, Austin and Dallas from which to learn more about three very different presidents - Bush father and son, and Lyndon B. Johnson. We hope all three presidential libraries are widely visited by interested citizens as well as historians and other scholars.